Tire Rack’s Rogers spends half a year managing a fleet of seven test cars and more than 100 test drivers. He said that on any given day with a single driver, the Michelin, Yokohama, Toyo, or Hankook might finish quickest in a dry autocross because of variances in driving styles. But, on average, the Yokohama ends up the winner, meaning more drivers go quicker with this tire than any other. They had better, for $199 apiece.

The Yoko’s podium finish comes down to its dry performance. Geswein effused, “This tire thrived on driving the dog snot out of it.” Every aspect of this tire’s dry performance (steering, grip, feedback, recovery, and precision) was strong.

Geswein’s enthusiasm might have been tempered had he been aware of how the Yokohama would fare in the wet: Not so great. The Yokohama finished just ahead of the bottom markers, with lap times at the slow end and midpack grip.

Subjectively, the AD08 seemed louder than its 66-decibel reading, with thwacking sounds over bumps. Plus, its ride was pretty firm. Those are two annoyances we would gladly trade for a dry-performance advantage if we were regularly indulging in track days.